‘We will resist’: CAQ’s Quebec constitution would concentrate power with premier, group says

A lawyer for an anglophone rights group is warning that Quebec’s proposed constitution would give the government sweeping powers, stifle dissent and make it far harder to challenge laws in court. “While a constitution should protect the people from the state, in this case it protects the state from the people,” Marion Sandilands told 100 people at an online public meeting organized by TALQ, an anglophone advocacy group. She was referring to Bill 1 – the Quebec Constitution Act, 2025 – introduced last month by Justice Minister Simon Jolin-Barrette and criticized by academics, opposition parties, and Quebec’s lawyers’ order.